Ah, GameStop — where your old, unloved video games go to die. The retailer, which has built its name by trading on new and used games and game systems, has announced that they plan on selling Android tablets. No specifics as to which tablet they plan on selling, or if indeed they plan on sticking to one particular model. The news (following a few days speculation) was enough to tick their stock up .4 percent.
The bit I find interesting is that GameStop is targeting the casual gamer with this. You know the type: absolutely no interest in hours of gaming, but whips out a smartphone for some Bejeweled or Angry Birds action when there’s a lull. The thing is, casual gaming on a tablet is pretty different than casual gaming on a phone. Your phone is something you already have with you. You may take your phone out on the subway or in the bathroom (oh hush, we know you do it), but you’re not as likely to tote about a 7″ to 10″ slab of electronics.
Further, even assuming that these casual gamers can be convinced that they need a tablet (one that isn’t an iPad), then you also have to convince them to buy it at GameStop, a store very much targeted at hardcore gamers. Why would the average casual gamer even be aware of the niche store? They’re far more likely to snag a tablet at a big box realtor.
I’ll be watching this story with interest for my Tablet Digest. Check in there every Thursday to see how this plays out.
They did buy SpawnLabs, which does game streaming & Impulse, who gives them an online gamestore a few months back who knows what that could yield for them. Its an interesting space to keep an eye on especially if that OnLive service has any success.